Maj Gen. Abdul Khalifa, the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 7 Division of the Army and Commander Sector 1, Operation Lafiya Dole has said the recovery of Marte from Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists was done with minimal casualty to Nigerian troops.
Troops recovered New Marte and adjoining communities in Borno, killing scores of Boko Haram/Islamic States West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists who had laid siege on the area for some days.
According to the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Yerima, the feat was achieved on Tuesday at about 3 p.m.
The troops achieved the success in less than the 48 hours, after the Chief of Army Staff, Maj.-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, had given the troops a 48-hour directive to recover the town.
He said the troops, backed by air cover from the Nigerian Air Force, successfully swept through Marte town, destroying several Improvised Explosive Device (IEDs) and landmines laced across their routes.
According to him, scores of Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists were killed.
“The gallant troops are currently in total control of the general area,” he said.
Khalifa said, “Yesterday, we recaptured Marte after eliminating dozens of terrorists with a very minimal casualty on our part. The operation was successfully conducted with effective synergy and aggressive joint operation of the ground troops and Air Task Force working with credible intelligence”.